Social factors that predict cognitive decline in older African American adults

Abstract

Objectives Projections from the United States Census Bureau suggest that the African American population may be the fastest growing race over the next 30 years and that they may be at the highest risk for developing dementia later in life. Various social factors have been shown to be associated with cognitive function and health outcomes. The present study aims to evaluate the relationship between social engagement and cognitive decline in a cohort of older African American adults. Methods We utilized multilevel modeling to examine the association between cognitive decline and social engagement in a sample of 617 older African American adults. Results Social activity was associated with global cognition, perceptual speed, perceptual orientation, and episodic memory over time. Loneliness was associated with better semantic memory performance over time. Perceived discrimination was associated with better semantic memory performance over time. Larger social network was associated with worse perceptual speed scores over time. Conclusions Although our findings on loneliness and perceived discrimination over time were inconsistent with prior research, our findings on social activity and social network size over time were consistent with past literature and are thought to be due to positive social interactions providing a catalyst for cognitively stimulating activities. These results suggest that interventions designed to preserve cognition in African American older adults should incorporate adequate social activity. Furthermore, to maximize effectiveness, interventions should not necessarily focus on just expanding one's social network.

Operationalizing Social Environments in Cognitive Aging and Dementia Research: A Scoping Review

“…When sorted into the 3-tiered social-ecological model ( Figure 1 A), 91 examined interpersonal level social environments [ 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 , 55 , 56 , 57 , 58 , 59 , 60 , 61 , 62 , 63 , 64 , 65 , 66 , 67 , 68 , 69 , 70 , 71 , 72 , 73 , 74 , 75 ,…”

Relationship between financial well‐being, life satisfaction, and cognitive function among low‐income community‐dwelling older adults: the moderating role of sex

“…The effects of financial well‐being on cognitive function are important for both genders. Older people with higher financial well‐being, irrespective of sex, are usually readily engaged in a healthy lifestyle, social activities, and health‐seeking behaviours, all which help safeguard later‐life cognitive vitality 42,43 . Results could also be traced to health‐care accessibility and chronic medical conditions.…”

“…Older people with higher financial well-being, irrespective of sex, are usually readily engaged in a healthy lifestyle, social activities, and health-seeking behaviours, all which help safeguard later-life cognitive vitality. 42,43 Results could also be traced to health-care accessibility and chronic medical conditions. Older people with higher socioeconomic status, irrespective of sex, reported higher health-care utilization and were more cognizant of their medical conditions than older adults in lower socioeconomic groups.…”

Racism and Older Black Americans’ Health: a Systematic Review

“…Cardiovascular measures included cardiometabolic biomarkers such as C-reactive protein (CRP), [22,29] hypertension/blood pressure, [23,29,33,52,64] and having either a history of or dying from heart disease. [40,43] Cognitive measures included single and multi-component tests of cognition [21,24,37,44,46,57,61] and neuroimaging assessments. [38,44] Physical function measures included questionnaires and battery assessments of function, disability, and physical performance.…”